The New Beacons of Vytal
by WispOfAShade
Summary: Ruby and her teammates are destined to become great hunters and huntresses. Unfortunately, their enemies know this and will stop at nothing to prevent the prodigious team from ever graduating. And it won't just be through combat, even the morals which they know so well will turn against them, and what is a warrior without ideals? Rated T for safety
1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note: **Yes, I am a new writer that simply had a passion to write a fanfiction, inspired to write by RWBY, like many others. The story's great dynamics with action sequences and tense character development created quite a lot of fans like me, and a ton of fan fiction writers due to its unfortunately long uploading status. My story in particular will start off at the end of the forest episode, were Jaune defends Cardin from the Ursa. I will try to acknowledge all canon information given up to this point, but the plot will obviously differ from the original, seeing as this is a fanfic. Once again, I would like to state I am a new writer and all questions and criticisms are gladly received. Enjoy!

The New Beacons of Vytal: Chapter 1

Pyrrha Nikos had a virtual tidal wave in her stomach that seemed delighted with colliding with her guts, then sloshing back and hitting the other side. Over, and over, and over again. Of course she had needed to interfere; Jaune would've been raked apart from his mistake. Nonetheless, she knew he was still sensitive about his combat prowess, and the revelation that he could not defeat a single Grimm without help would crush him. Arguably, Ursa were indeed relatively tough customers, but Jaune would not buy it, considering one of his teammates rode one for pleasure, being unable to face one would be a slap to his ambitions of being able to lead the team. He can do it, Pyrrha insisted, he just had never been in situations like this and it would take experience to transform him into the warrior she knew he could become.

As she entered her dorm to cash in for the knight, she could not have known that, at the same time, a shadow lurking down the hall was thinking the same thing.

The next morning, both teams awoke with the vigor of a sloth that had been sunbathing for hours. The excitement of the battle with the Ursa had kept Jaune from falling asleep, and everyone else had been too beside themselves with anger upon learning how Cardin had treated Jaune, and how he planned to harm Pyrrha with rapier wasps, virtually unprovoked. Unsurprisingly, there was one exception…

"THEY HAVE BLUEBERRIES IN THEM!" declared Nora, again mowing down dozens of innocent pancakes, using her patented, physics-defying "pasta technique" to consume them by the plateful.

"That's absolutely wonderful," replied, of all people, Ruby. Despite the scenario, this elicited a small smile from Yang, who was glad to see Ruby being on the other end of dealing with a hyperactive nut for once.

After dressing and eating, the team went to the one class they had that Friday: Weapon Mechanisms. The class was a new one introduced just that year, and annoying to a lot of people, due to the fact they had already constructed their weapons and proved their worth. If they had already built theirs perfectly, why were they taking a class _after _the weapons were built? It was this thought that entered the heads of most of the students as they started toward the rather…industrial building that stood before them. Yep, this definitely was going to be a class that would be a story of horror for all of the students' descendants.

There were two people hoping otherwise; resident Grim Reaping enthusiast Ruby (no shockers there), and also Jaune "Why can't I High-Impact Gun-Thingy" Arc, hoping to finally turn his fortune around.

"If there is ever a chance for me to ditch this thing for a new weapon," he thought, glancing with contempt at his family heirloom, "it will be here. I don't care what it is, even a staff that doubles as a spitball shooter would be better than what I have now." He paused at the doors, and then opened them with renewed excitement.

The compound was, as expected, built for functionality over appearance. As he entered, a double-door airlock greeted him as the formal entrance to the gigantic room. It looked like a factory assembly line over any place that was supposed to provide a comfortable learning environment. And then he looked at the front of the room, where sitting behind the control panel…

"He better be hot," thought Yang as she entered shortly behind Jaune. The class was such a buzz kill; she'd perfected the Ember Celica well before the year started. For such a waste of her time in such a poor place for her skin, the instructor better have a good bod that spent plenty of time being exemplified by a tight fitting shirt, clinging to him by his sweat in the shop. She started into her daydreaming mode. Aww yeah, he would be built like a statue, to handle the burden of being a hard working mechanic, and would ask her to help him…

"AAAUUUGHHH!" she exclaimed as her visions were suddenly replaced by the reality of the instructor at the front of the room. Oh, he was definitely huge; standing at about 6' 8" but to her dismay his size was quite fixated around his unbelievably large belly. His sheer mass put even Professor Port to shame.

"Good morning students! I, Professor Gepetto, will be your teacher on how to analyze, repair, and hopefully avoid the numerous weapons you see out in the Hunting World!" beamed the professor. The students all inwardly groaned. His overenthusiasm was rivaling Peter as well. This was going to be a long session.

**A.N. **And that is my first chapter written! If you're in to RWBY for its action, then DO NOT worry, plenty of that is coming, but my goal is to actually try and introduce some characters first before sending them flying through walls and ceilings for my (and hopefully your) amusement :)

Anyway, criticize, review, all that good stuff. Part two coming out soon


	2. Chapter 2

**Author's Note: **Hello! This is Wisp, back to write another chapter, because I'm as ready for some serious action that has to be in any RWBY fanfic. I still need to lay down some setting building chapters, but I promise I'm rapid-firing them as much as possible to get to the action ASAP

The New Beacons of Vytal: Chapter 2

"Now, I can all tell what you are thinking, that this is a rubbish class, and more boring than a Dust-powered drill," proclaimed Gepetto, waiting for the response to the pun. It never came.

_Kids these days_ he murmured under his breath, before continuing, "Well, I agree that trying to reteach what you already know is a waste of time. So let's cut to the chase," he said, motioning toward a wall that opened up as he pressed a button on his panel.

Admittedly, this new development got the attention of most of the students. Specifically, turning it away from his baldness, which many students were mesmerized by. How on Earth did he get his chrome dome to be that shiny? As opposed to the workshop surrounding them, _this _room was a high tech masterpiece, looking like a very advanced simulation type-room.

"As you know, the only true way to test your weapon is to fight with it," he continued, "but I would really rather not have you spar with another like you do in Glenda's class, as I would rather keep the nearby analyzing equipment intact, thank you very much. So here's the deal."

He next motioned to a cylindrical chamber next to the room. "This is probably one of the most advanced pieces of technology any of you, or even I, will ever see. This wonder of a machine will measure every detail of the weapons you put into it, every curve, indent, mechanism, you name it. We will use this information later when we analyze your battle performances within the simulation machine, were you will fight these," he casually monologued, even as the machine began to whir and spawn two Grimm right next to him, to the shock of quite a few students around him. They were quite realistic, and it took the group a few students to realize they were holograms. "Deactivate them now, computer, before someone defecates on my floor", Gepetto remarked to some device. The holograms vanished.

"For now, however, the machine be used to create blueprints. You see, your weapons will not always be in the pristine shape they are in now. They will see wear, damage, and aging during your career as a Hunts man or woman. So simply building it is not enough, you must be able to know your weapon so well you can identify and fix even the most obscure of impairments on your weapon. And to this end…to be sure there isn't a single component beyond your knowledge," he paused for a bit of tension to gather, "you will be disassembling and reassembling your entire weapon."

He had to wait a full quarter of a second for the reaction of his class to this proposal: "WHAT!"

"We need our weapons for Professor Goodwitch's class!" protested Weiss.

"Not to mention we are required to keep them action ready by school policy," agreed Ren.

"I am aware you will need your weapons at the end of every class period. Allow me to finish," he said, gesturing towards the work stations. He then reached into one of the compartments, withdrawing a box from its contents and opening it for all to see.

"This is the completely dissembled version to an older model of weapon. You might recognize it as Professor Port's. He technically never agreed to let me have this, but such an accomplished hunter such as himself should have no problem with just his bare hands," he snarked. The class laughed. Apparently, his students had not been the only victims of his stories.

"Now observe," he commanded, putting the mess of parts on the work table and pressing a button. After a quick audio message to stay away from the table, a glass container quickly descended from the above, encasing the pile. Dust was injected through the top of the container, then a buzzing sound burst from the contraption, as the parts began to swirl around in the container. The Dust ignited and encircled the mess, causing it to glow, and after a few seconds of swirling so fast no one could even see it, Peter's weapon laid where the mess used to be, in all its lack of glory.

"This will assemble any weapon in its memory banks, and even works in reverse," he continued. "It remembers the last time it assembled the object and what state its components were in, so it is the perfect learning tool. Starting tomorrow, you will work on disassembling it, allowing the computer to reassemble it at the end of every class, and return from where you left off every time you reenter. Now, that about sums up our semester, and I really don't think I need to go over anything else today, so off you…Ruby, err, what are you doing?" he inquired, noticing the young girl already had her weapon in pieces.

"We're disassembling, right?" she questioned innocently.

"Well, yes, but how did you do that?" replied Gepetto incredulously.

"Well, sometimes I get bored, and there's not cookies or milk around, so I disassemble and reassemble it for fun," she quaintly replied, failing to notice almost everyone else's jaw hit the floor.

"Umm…well, it looks like you have made a good start, Ruby." Gepetto managed to spit out, "but you should've put the weapon in the machine so it can…build it back…for…you," he stuttered as he watched her build the entire contraption even as he spoke. The weapon had been assembled in less than 5 minutes, despite it being a whopper of a weapon, and he estimated it would've taken an average student a week to do the same task.

"Class dismissed," the professor said, without another word.

Crimson paced around in her hideout, waiting for her subordinates to reach her with information. She scowled. Didn't they realize that she needed to get on with her plan with all due haste? Every day that Beacon stood was increasing her anger. And as they ought to know better than anybody else, that would mean more…discipline, in ensuring that they would not fail to be punctual again.

Finally, when it seemed like her anger was about to manifest into a flame that would have scorched the room, she finally received a message via the Comm. Board.

"Subject: Shades. Target: Beacon Academy. Status: Contact"

**A.N. **

And another chapter down! Finally, all this introductory stuff is almost done, and the plot of this story will be in full swing by the next chapter. As always, read, review, even PM me some ideas, and I will include them if I see it possible to do so.


	3. Chapter 3

**Author's Note: **Finally! The chapter of plot advancement has begun, along with some action! I would like to note that if you were wondering why a character has a name like Gepetto in a world of far cooler names, he is named after the creator of Pinocchio. As always, read & review! This chapter is quite a bit longer than my previous ones and I put quite a bit of effort into it, so if you're reading it get comfortable.

The New Beacons of Vytal: Chapter 3

The class shuffled out of the classroom, mumbling something about stupid prodigies and how a certain scythe-wielder needed _way _less free time. All except Jaune Arc, who urgently needed the attention of Gepetto. _I mean_, he thought, _I have a weapon so simple and dumb it _can't_ be disassembled. Surely Mr. Gepetto will agree with me. _As said teacher was fiddling with some objects on his workbench, Jaune approached from behind and laid a hand on his shoulder.

_Jeez, he must be hiding a lot of muscle with that lard, _he noted, feeling that his shoulder was rock solid beneath his hand.

"Um, can I talk to you?" Jaune asked as Gepetto turned around. "It's about…these." He placed Crocea Mors in the hands of the weapon-maker. "I don't think I should be using these. They're obsolete, and more importantly, they simply don't fit with the criteria of this class. So can I get a weapon with, I don't know, an actual gun and mechanisms?" Jaune requested, and then continued, upon noticing Gepetto's complete transfixion on his sword, "Umm…sir?"

The man continued to observe the sword, then looked up at the knight and spoke. "Boy, are you out of your mind?"

"Uh, no, I just want a weapon I can work o-"

"Oh, don't you worry about that. Because what you hold, whether you know it, is one of the greatest weapons ever created," he stated, looking directly in Jaune's eyes. "Besides, every student is required to use whatever weapon they register with for all classes. This might surprise you, but you aren't the only student without a fancy gun on the inside."

Truth be told, that last part did surprise Jaune, considering the weapons he saw on a daily basis were the cool ones his friends had. Come to think of it though, he hadn't seen Cardin's Almace do anything special either. Maybe they did have something in common.

"My parents keep telling me about the 'special potential' the sword has," Jaune retorted, coming back to the conversation, "so if you're going to bring it up, could you at least tell me what it is? Besides an heirloom to dump on the runt of the litter?"

Gepetto raised an eyebrow at that one. "I can see your discomfort goes a little beyond just what you consider to be class-correct, but for now, I will tell you this," he calmly let out.

"I will give you until the next class to figure it out. If you do not, see me again afterwards. I promise you, all will be revealed."

"Now," he grumbled, "if you don't mind, I have some business to attend to. Out you go." He motioned to the door, and Jaune obliged.

Two days had passed since the meeting with Gepetto, but the sword remained as useless as ever to Jaune. He'd done everything, searched every facet toward some secret compartment or hidden trigger. He'd even tried vocal commands.

"SKYWARD STRIKE!" he yelled as he slashed the air in front of a tree, waiting for it to be cut down by the blow. Somehow, it managed to resist the imaginary attack.

"Jaune, I don't think this is worth it," spoke Ren with concern, as he entered the clearing where Jaune was practicing. "You've been at this for five hours. Maybe you should rest, or perhaps at least eat something. You're just going in reverse at this point."

"As if that wasn't the direction I've always been going in," Jaune mumbled, but he sheathed his weapon, and went out of the training ground, grabbing a quick recovery snack at his room and taking a quick shower. From there, he joined his teammates in the lounge, and as he sat on one of the chairs, he noticed that RWBY had taken seats across the room from him, with Blake actually conversing with her teammates for once.

"Since when does she actually talk without being forced to?" Jaune wondered aloud to his teammates, "Next thing you know, Ren might actually smile!" He received a disapproving glare for that one. "Ok, things are still normal. But seriously, what happened?"

The three squad mates glanced at each other for a second before Pyrrha spoke up. "You don't know what happened yesterday?"

"Besides me not being able to achieve anything with my stupid sword, no, what?"

Pyrrha then tried to follow up, she really did, but Nora beat her to the punch.

"BLAKELETITSLIPTHATSHEWASAKITTYANDFREAKEDOUTANDRANAWAY

BUTTHENALOTOFBADKITTESSHOWEDUPANDRUBYFOUGHTTHEMWITHA MONKEYGUYANDROBOSLICINGCHICKANDBLAKECAMEBACKANDMADEUPWITHTHEM. Yup, that's about it."

Lie Ren, the only one used to having his ears ringing after one of Nora's outbursts, quietly told Nora, "Thank you Nora, it appears your test to see how high your volume could go was a complete success."

"YAY!" answered Nora. Ren, again, predicted her usual obliviousness to sarcasm, but judging by the red face-palm marks on the heads of the other two, they still had quite a bit more tolerance to achieve.

"Well then," Jaune spilled out, "we should probably return the dorms. It's getting to be sunset, and the last thing I want is-"

Jaune didn't get to finish that sentence, as he all of the sudden realized that the blade of the Gambol Shroud was coming right towards him

"SHHHHIIIIII-err, shin splints," Jaune recovered as the katana buried itself in the wall above him. "BLAKE, WHAT AR-"

"Just take a look." Blake calmly replied.

He slowly edged away and looked up. And the sight looking back at him was not winning a beauty pageant.

Pinned to the wall by the blade was some…thing. Surrounded by black, billowing haze was an imp-like feature with no face. It was simply a skin of gray and black, with finger-like appendages on its hands and feet that looked more made for slashing than gripping.

Jaune finally managed to recover; brushing himself off as both teams looked on. "Well, I'm surprised it got in here. Thankfully, just one doesn't seem-WOAH!"

Jaune had to jump back, as apparently the creature was not alone. He raised his shield and peered over it.

Teams JNPR and RWBY had weapons drawn, and now put themselves in a circular formation. Somehow, hundreds of these things had managed to infiltrate the lounge and were crawling out of every face.

"We need to take it outside!" yelled Weiss. The eight warriors made a dash for the door. There were creatures in the way, but a few swipes of the blades of the students quickly cut them out of the way.

"Ok, now we can fight these things _without_ damaging the school," panted Yang.

"Yeah," Jaune agreed, "and this shouldn't be too bad, we just took out like 20 of them without breaking a- OH COME ON!"

The team observed with dismay that the slicing that they inflicted upon the creatures were fusing back together. Clearly, cutting them down was not an effective strategy.

"Dust weapons, everyone!" hollered Ruby.

The team quickly engaged the guns on their weapons, and Weiss dialed in a canister on her Myrtenaster.

"Ok, Yang, you charge the right section of them. Everyone else, aim for the middle and left, and try to not shoot Ya-", Jaune attempted to command.

"WE KNOW!" the rest of the team responded, as Yang rushed toward the mass, with her team's dust weapons firing behind her.

Jaune realized his sudden uselessness in the situation. As he saw the rounds hit their mark, he realized only Dust energy was keeping the things down. With nothing but an oversized butter-knife, nothing he had could harm them. He tried to get some ideas from his teammates.

"So, what do I-?"

Pyrrha looked at Jaune with a painfully sad look on her face.

"I'm sorry, Jaune, I just don't think you can help us here."

She had said it with no malice or underlying tone, but perhaps it was the sincerity of it that hit Jaune the hardest. Here he was, being the epitome of the load of the group, again. It looked like he was just going to be watching the fireworks once more. Though, he admitted, it was at least a good show.

Out of all the fighters, Yang was definitely the most effective. She was an unholy harbinger of destruction with her Ember Celica, with a flurry of punch-blasts that made the horde miniature punching bags to her incendiary boxing. Weiss and Nora, covering the ground with blazes and grenade explosions, were not too far behind. As for Blake, Ruby, Ren, and Pyrrha, they only had single shot weapons, but that's not to say they weren't effective. All aimed with hardened accuracy, with some of Ruby's high impact rounds plowing through multiple targets at once.

And yet, somehow it wasn't enough. Despite how they were being mowed down multiple dozens per second, they seemed to be pouring out of the building they had just escaped. And even though Jaune knew his teammates were super strong and enduring, he also knew that, against this enemy, it wouldn't really matter. It was all up to how much Dust the teams had, and as he could tell by the dawning realization on his friend's faces, that number was going down too fast. Even worse, due to the Beacon celebration in the town below, there wasn't going to be any assistance nearby. Sure, the building beginning to explode with dark parasites would probably have alerted the authorities by now, but they would be far too late.

The first to run out was Nora. Jaune didn't need to be paying that much attention to find that out, as she was very vocal in announcing she was out of her 'funnerworks', called so because they clearly had more sparkles than your standard rocket explosion. Then Weiss, then Yang, whose momentary pause to realize it allowed a creature to swipe at her head; Jaune knew where that was going.

"YOU SPLOTCH OF GRIMM PUKE!" roared Yang as not one, but two of her hairs were severed by the claw stroke. The imp never even got to land from its lunge as Yang's body lit up and it was punted with extreme prejudice. Apparently, Yang's aura-augmented blows were also effective on the creatures, and that gave the rest of the team hope. But soon, the rest of the team was completely dry of ammunition, and many were simply going around her.

"Yang, get back here!" yelled Ruby. Jaune understood, without any covering fire, eventually the sheer numbers would allow more and more of them to get in between her punches and kicks and would eventually cut her down. Unfortunately, Yang was lost to her angry side, and was apparently deaf to her sister's pleas, as she did not even hesitate in her blows.

"I've got her!" yelled Weiss, as she prepared her rapier. Although all of the elemental Dust was gone, her kinetic enhancing Dust, useless for fighting the imps, was still present, and she surrounded Yang in a glyph, launching her back to the group.

"Yang, look at yourself!" cried Blake with concerning, anticipating that Yang would try and throw herself back into the fray. Still shaken from being suddenly thrown back, the blonde complied. Cuts that had seemed minor at the time from glancing blows were seeping black wisps, and it was so painful of a sight and feeling Yang fell out of her anger and crumpled to the ground.

"I think we should retreat abou-" Jaune spoke, before being interrupted for the umpteenth time by the group of black beings that now surrounded them. There was no escape. They were going to be cut to shreds.

_No._

The first one leapt towards them.

_I refuse to fail my friends that have just given everything to try and protect me._

Jaune saw the claw of the imp head straight for Pyrrha's throat.

And then he saw his own blade, imbued in a heated energy, hit the creature and send it straight to oblivion.

And then he spun his blade, slicing into the semicircle behind them and taking another slice at the half in front, screaming "LET. ME. FINISH. MY. SENTENCES!" To him, it was simply a last-ditch effort in his rage to try _something_. But his teammates saw differently.

Somehow, Jaune's aura had flowed into the sword, but when it touched, it was no longer the gentle, passive flow it usually was. It had turned into a blazing, pure energy that surrounded the blade and took its shape, culminating in Crocea Mors looking almost three times its size. The swing of the blades utterly decimated every dark being it came in contact with, and within two strikes Jaune had incinerated every one of them within a 10 yard radius, a kill count well over a hundred.

"WOAH!" whooped Ruby. "Jaune, since when did you start setting your sword on fire?"

The creatures, thinking their prey had finally fallen apart, were taken aback by this sudden display of defense. Not to mention that the marks had been so deadly that only about 200 hundred remained, out of the original 1500. And the imps hadn't killed a single human yet. Thankfully, it looked like the blond male had used up all his strength with that last move, and there was nothing left that could touch them. They began to circle the group, determined to tear them apart.

"They're about to strike," Jaune panted. He could tell by the way the circling was beginning to slow down; the hoard had found where it was going to attack. And Jaune had nothing left in the tank.

_That doesn't matter_, considered Jaune, _because if I do nothing, we are all going to die. The only other person who can harm them is Yang, and she's been poisoned. Even if it kills you, you have to dig deep, find something, anything to save your friends._

The creatures came to a stop. Jaune readied his stance, mustered what flickering strength he could, and…

The world went to flames.

Or so it seemed. From out of nowhere, a hooded person appeared, with his back facing the group. But what that person had brought with her (or him, nobody could tell, but considering the ratio of female to male the group had, feminine pronouns were default) was far more of importance.

Surrounding the character was flaming aura, in the shape of a phoenix. And right before the eyes of the group, that aura grew until it swallowed the remaining foes. And it did not look like a pretty way to go for the creatures, almost looking like their very souls turned to flame before their bodies followed.

The hooded figure turned, the cowl hiding her/his face. With a quick motion of his arm towards Yang, the stranger calmly stated, "This is going to hurt", in a way that definitely suggested masculine. Fire erupted from his arms and surrounded Yang's body. The formerly black energy surrounding her wounds became searing orange and the agony was etched all over her face as she let loose an ear-piercing scream. Yet, after it was over, the poisonous wisps had dissipated and the cuts had been replaced with cauterized scars that appeared much healthier than the wounds previously in place.

"Who-" Weiss began to ask, but the newcomer had smoke bombed before she could finish.

"Party pooper," muttered Nora, but Ruby was not so easily dissuaded.

"Blake, you're kind of a ninja!" she asked, "Which way did he go?"

"Well, he took off that way," she indicated which direction, "but he was moving pretty fast. I'm not certain you can- sigh, why do I even bother?" she remarked as Ruby had already jetted after the hooded man.

Ruby took off after the man. Didn't he know it was rude not to introduce yourself? And Blake was right, he really was booking, but he had another think coming if he thought he could outrun _her. _And there he was! Ruby could just make him out up ahead, as he cleared the crest of a hill.

_Gotcha now, _smirked Ruby. She would clear the hill in a few seconds, and nothing would let him get away then.

She cleared the same crest and…gaped as there was no sign of the man anywhere. Only two buildings were in sight, the Library and the Machine Shop.

_The Library is still open, _she thought. _Logically, that's where he's more likely to be, but he's all secret agent-like. He's probably in the Shop._

She quickly dashed over to the building, careful to check the perimeter and make certain he simply wasn't hiding behind it.

_Ok then, time to check inside_, she thought. She went up to the door, caught her breath, and…nothing. The door was still locked.

_Dang it!_ She thought angrily, pressing the button repeatedly, _he will _not _give me the locked-door slip!_ As she was seriously considering using her scythe to tear down the door, it opened for her, and in the doorway stood Mr. Gepetto, with quite a bewildered expression. "Ruby? Look, if you are asking for extra credit, I assure you that you will pass just fine without it…"

"No!" exclaimed Ruby, "there's some ninja guy running around near here. Did you see him?"

"You saw him, too?" Gepetto asked, startled. "I've been seeing that guy all around the place recently. But I've always only got small looks at him, never can nail him down, it seems. Unfortunately, I have not seen him this evening, but if I ever see him again during class, I'll pretend to let you on a bathroom break. Catch him for both of us, will you? He's starting to irritate me."

Ruby was a bit disappointed, but answered with enthusiasm. "It'll be the fastest bathroom break I take, I promise."

**A.N. **Whoo! That was a big one! Hopefully, it was a story where its length was appreciated instead of a killer. Either way, read and review! ys only got small looks at him, never can nail hiim you will pass just fine without it... all over her face as she lecoul


	4. Chapter 4

Author's Note: Whew! After that last chapter, I had to take a step back and think about how I was going to follow it up, and I apologize with how long it took to get to write this chapter. If you do enjoy this fanfic, don't hesitate to write me a review. The more support I have for it, the more time and priority this story gets. But enough of that; enjoy!

**The New Beacons of Vytal: Chapter 4**

The seven remaining students urgently conversed about what to do next. Well, with Jaune and Yang collapsed from exhaustion, really only 5 contributed.  
"We need to warn the headmaster," insisted Weiss.  
"What about our teammates?" responded Pyrrha, "Ruby's run off in search of someone who's Aura can apparently incinerate his enemies, and we have these two who clearly need medical attention," she continued, gesturing to the blondes.  
"Then we need to split up. Someone's got to go get Ruby, while two of us carry Jaune and Yang to the infirmary, and another two to explain the situation to Ozpin," contributed Blake.  
"Nora loves tag. She will get Ruby," offered Ren, completely deadpan despite the nature of what he just said. The group nodded; Nora's hyperactivity would probably be the only force that could catch Ruby, and she definitely was not the prime candidate to give an accurate explanation of the situation to either Ozpin or the medics. Really, it wouldn't have mattered if they had objected anyway, as Nora was predictably already in pursuit immediately after Ren's suggestion.  
"Then I will carry Jaune to the hospital." Pyrrha spoke, perhaps a little too hastily. As if the group didn't already know she would be the one to jump at that role. Trying to divert attention away from that train of thought, Pyrrha continued, "Who will take back Yang?"  
"I'll do that," volunteered Ren, of all people. This was not due to an obvious crush; Ren simply figured that, due to his martial arts history, he was probably physically the strongest remaining teammate, since Nora, and Yang herself, were not options.  
"Alright then, that leaves Blake and I to go to Ozpin," finished Weiss. "Let's break, people!"

***  
Pyrrha took a look down at the unconscious knight in her arms as she hurried toward the hospital, with Ren trailing behind. What had happened to Crocea Mors back there? Sure, she saw what it had done to the creatures, but what had it done to Jaune? Unlike Yang, who'd clearly had a bad case of poisoning before the mysterious man's intervention, Jaune hadn't taken a single hit. The energy around his sword was … downright intense. Yang's aura was the strongest power she'd ever seen anyone produce, but Jaune's newfound energy was something more than just Aura. Even with his high levels, this was something unforeseen entirely.  
"Pyrrha, head's up!" Ren shouted. Pyrrha had slowed down drastically, staring at Jaune, and in Ren's haste he was about to run right into the back of her.  
"Oh, jeez!" Pyrrha exclaimed, swerving aside and missing the cargo of the green Hunter by inches.  
As Pyrrha quickened her pace back up, Ren scolded her. "Look, if Jaune happens to wake up, nothing to worry about," he said, "but if Yang wakes up the wrong way in my arms, I'm the sorry soul that feels her wrath. So please don't kill me!"  
"Sorry!" Pyrrha sheepishly apologized. Thankfully, she didn't have to worry about messing up again, as they had finally arrived at the medical facility.  
Without any hesitation, the two dumped the blondes on the gurneys available at the entrance, and wheeled them to the emergency wing.  
"A Hunter and a Huntress injured over here! There's been a battle with creatures on school grounds, and we need the school on high alert!" Pyrrha yelled, presenting the secretary with the pair. The rather spooked attendant flipped the case on a red button and pressed it. Immediately, medics came through the doors to the room and whisked the wounded warriors away.  
"Go meet up with the others at Ozpin's!" Pyrrha commanded to Ren. "I'll stay here and describe the wounds to the medics!" The Hunter nodded and hurried off.  
Pyrrha followed the medics as they hurried the gurneys to the treatment rooms. "The girl, Yang, got clawed by some imp-like creature," Pyrrha explained. "The species wasn't quite a Grimm, but I could feel the same dark presence from it. What kind of creature is that, anyway?"  
"Hrmm. Haven't had a case like this in a while," the medic replied, "but if I remember correctly, those beasties are known as Shades. They were once animals, but were corrupted by the same energy that spawns Grimm. Unlike the rest of them, they actually have Aura, but it's twisted, nasty stuff. Along with the regenerative powers I'm certain you've witnessed, it also is absolute poison to human Aura. Only with expert Aura manipulation can someone heal it, otherwise your only hope of stopping the corruption of your body is amputation. Who healed this lady, anyways? I'm glad he or she did it, because the only doctor we've got experienced to tackle this is on vacation at the moment."  
"I really don't know for sure," Pyrrha began to recall. "He wore a black cowl to conceal himself. About six feet tall, with a fiery orange Aura. Know someone like that?"  
The doctor shook his head. "I just recently transferred to this job here at the school. If he was a former student, perhaps some of my associates might know. Or you could obviously ask the headmaster himself. Before you get worried about that, thought, care to tell me what's wrong with this one?" he asked.  
"Jaune's case is…a little weirder." She stammered. "When he was fighting, his Aura started to come out, but as soon as it hit his sword, it just exploded into this unbelievable energy. It killed a lot of the Shades, but, after about 5 seconds of using it he couldn't even stand."  
"Wait a second…that sword is Crocea Mors, the Arc heirloom." The doctor observed. "One of the few weapons created to be able to produce Nova."  
"Nova?" Pyrrha asked, intrigued.  
"It's a subject most people only get to hear about." The medic confirmed. "I can't say I know everything, but the skinny goes something like this: When Aura is infused with Dust, it creates this energy, Nova. A few very rare, very special weapons are forged with solid Dust cores specifically so the user can charge it with Aura to make this energy. However, it requires an enormous skill of Aura manipulation to use effectively, or the Dust will pull all of the Aura out of the poor sap. I'm guessing that's what happened to this lad, and I'm surprised his family allowed him to have this weapon. They must have…quite a lot of faith in him."  
Pyrrha stared at Jaune as she mulled over this information. On one hand, she was excited. She knew Jaune was a great warrior, and it was about time she was proven right! On the other, she was quite alarmed. Jaune had just learned that Aura existed at the beginning of the year; there was no way he could learn that kind of ability in a split second. If he had used this ability once, there was no telling when it would appear again. And Jaune being drained unconscious (or worse, she thought with a shudder) after every fight was not an option.  
"Well, I'm going to get on working on these two. You should probably return to Ozpin, he should know how to deal with this," spoke the medic. Pyrrha snapped out of her train of thought, replied with a thank you, and ran towards the Headmaster's office

***  
"PROFESSOR OZPIN!" Weiss blurted as she rushed through his front door. "There's been an attack on the grounds!"  
The headmaster in question was not happy to have his nice, piping cappuccino put on hold, but given the clear urgency of the situation, he inquired, "Where? What happened?"  
"Sir, our team and JNPR were assaulted by some rather disturbing cretins." Blake reported. "They were impish in appearance, and surrounded by the most sinister substance I've ever witnessed. They ambushed us from the library, and managed to infiltrate it with hundreds of them. How did they get in?"  
"Shades…" Ozpin muttered. "Shades are the identity of these beings. Their aura makes them natural assassins. Because they have it, they lack the void in our senses that Grimm produce, yet the Auras are so faded and corrupted they don't appear as vividly as natural creatures. It is also incredibly harmful to our own. How did this encounter play out?"  
"Well, we had to resort to Dust weaponry, because they were immune to every stab and slice we threw at them." Weiss recalled. "But somehow, when Yang activated her Aura, it seemed to make them vulnerable. And then there was Jaune…"  
Ozpin gave an interested look at Weiss, one that suggested he had predicted what she was about to say next. "Go on…"  
"Well, until then, Yang's blazing Aura was the strongest thing I'd ever seen, but even that was…well…inefficient, especially against these things. She could punch, sure, but despite her best efforts, she only had four limbs to beat them with, and she got overwhelmed really quickly. But Jaune pulled out something entirely new altogether. This wasn't Aura: it was pure destruction. It just disintegrated the creatures like they were made of sand. It completely drained Jaune, and I don't know why we didn't get fried with the blasted things."  
"So, where are the other six?" Ozpin demanded.  
Blake now continued the report: "Jaune and Yang both had to be taken to the hospital. Ruby's chasing a new player, some hooded figure that saved us after we ran out of Dust and Jaune and Yang collapsed. He had a fiery energy that he radiated that burned away the remaining Shades, and it gave off the same energy that Jaune did. Not nearly as concentrated, but it was enough to kill them nonetheless. You wouldn't happen to know anything about him, would you?"  
Ozpin looked away for a moment, clearly trying to clear his mind before answering.  
"I do, and I will inform you of what I know. But for now, you must tell me about the whereabouts of Nora, Pyrrha and-"  
He was interrupted by a certain green-clad Hunter entering his office. "Pyrrha's still in the medical department and it looks like no major wounds were suffered," Ren interjected.  
"And Nora?"  
"We sent her to back up or retrieve Ruby from her pursuit. She'll be back any-"  
"I WIN!" the aforementioned spaz yelled as she barged in, carrying Ruby by her hood. She then plopped her in the center of the floor, with a firm "No tag-backs!"  
"Ren…you…you said she took…her meds today." Squeaked a much traumatized Ruby.  
"As if any medicine would slow her down anyway," Ren replied, deadpan.  
"Anyway, do we have any more business to discuss?"  
"We do," Answered the Headmaster, "and if Jaune and Yang are still conscious I should like them to hear of it as well."

**********  
The members of teams JNPR and RWBY crowded around Yang's bed. Jaune, being merely a victim of Aura exhaustion, was cleared to be moved around on a gurney. Yang, although feeling much better since her encounter, was, however, ordered to stay in her room, as the medical staff was being extra cautionary over the Shade-inflicted wounds. They all appeared okay, but these professionals were not about to simply accept that a stranger's patching of a very potent wound was enough until they were absolutely satisfied with their own investigation. Meanwhile, the students awaited the word from the gray-haired professor.  
"As I'm certain you're aware," Ozpin finally began, "there was an appearance of a figure during your fight with the Shades, one that Mr. Gepetto has reported being on our campus for a while. Until now, I have not taken any stock in that claim, but this development proves its legitimacy and it's time I came clean about what I know about this man."  
Ozpin cleared his throat, and continued. "He was indeed a student of mine, a sixteen year old I accepted six years ago, the youngest student accepted until Ruby here came along. He did not have a name, and the staff at Signal found nothing on his past at the time. The codename we bestowed upon him was Pax, teamed up with fellow students Horus, Navia, and Xena to form team PHNX. They seemed like they could've been the perfect team. They overcame every obstacle that felled most other students. They strove to better themselves at every opportunity. But there was a flaw in their team I failed to protect them from: each other."  
"Pax himself was an unmatched specialist in Aura manipulation. His semblance is the Forge, as he can shape his fiery aura into any form he sees fit. He wasn't limited to the thin, invisible layer that Aura in most of us arranges itself to be. His passable combat skill, combined with his overpowering Aura augmentation, made him a nearly unbeatable opponent. But his flaw was failing to realize that he was not trying to prevent himself from falling, but the people and teammates he was supposed to protect. And that is what led to his fall from grace, as during his senior year, he returned from a mission in tears, having gotten all three of his teammates killed by his own admission. In his shame, he quit Beacon that year, before he could graduate, and left the public light. Why he has chosen now to resurface is a mystery you all will have to answer yourself. But his reappearance coinciding with the most massive Shade attack to date…I doubt it is by chance."  
He rose from his seat by Yang's bed, continuing. "Before all else, you two must rest and recover. That, of course, does not mean you will be exempt from the school work. I expect one of your friends here will update you on assignments, via scroll or in person. As for you other six…prepare yourself. I will look into this matter personally, because I suspect the forces that rise now are the ones responsible for this accident two years ago. Now…you six are dismissed."

A.N. WOW! I am really sorry, again, for putting this off. I had midterms recently, and had trouble bringing myself to write this during Spring Break, but since three weeks had already passed, I knew it was long overdue to put this part out. Reviewing is caring. Peace!


	5. Chapter 5

Author's Note: Chapter 5, enjoy reading it. If it isn't enjoyable, go grab a pillow and eat some chips while doing it, so at least it wasn't a complete waste of time.

**The New Beacons of Vytal: Chapter 5 **

The sound of a heavy weapon colliding with a "whump!" on a training dummy resounded through the gym as its wielder gave a hearty yell slamming a mace into it. One of his teammates went over and checked the score. "Nice job. You got 550, that's a new record!" called out Dove Bronzewing, as none other than Cardin Winchester wiped his brow, and gave a small grin. "Finally. It's about time I beat that orange-headed sugar rush in strength." Of course, he knew he would never be as fast or enduring as that freak of nature, but then again he doubted anyone on the planet was. The larger boy sighed…then gave a small frown as team RWBY and JNPR entered the weight room. The former bully had undertaken a… unpredictable change in character following the events at Forever Fall. Ever since then, as his teammates noted, he refused to spend time picking on anyone, and always went silent whenever Jaune came in the vicinity. But most of all, he'd become proactive. All of a sudden, his teammates found themselves in the weight room and gym a lot more on a daily basis, and told to retire to their rooms after they were done, no questions asked. Sky Lark began to reminisce on the conversation that seemed to kick off this change in behavior.

_"I think we can finally turn back," panted Russell. The three teammates guiltily started back towards the area where Cardin had been attacked, knowing that the danger had probably been dealt with by someone at this point. When they returned to the clearing, they saw teams JNPR and RWBY walking away from a weak, but thankfully conscious Cardin. The trio nervously approached their leader. "Hey, Cardin. Um…sorry we left, we were just getting help, but it looks like-" "WHAT HAPPENED?" Cardin scolded at his subordinates. "YOU ARE ALL SUPPOSED TO BE HUNTERS! THE THREE OF YOU COULDN'T AT LEAST TRY TO HELP ME? WHAT KIND OF TEAM IS THIS?" However, as he asked this last question, he looked down, as if he himself was the target of his fury. "And do you know why I'm alive?" Cardin continued, with a look of incomprehension and desperation beginning to take hold on his features. "That brat, that blonde loser…saved my life. Every duel I won…was he holding back? How did he manage to get the better of a monster that knocked me down in five seconds? And…why?" His teammates could only stand silent at this outburst. Cardin finally rose from his kneeling position and, after some effort, placed a determined look on his face, brushing off his earlier panic. "New rules, boys. We've gone soft; we used to be some of the cream of the crop. Now, we're cowering under problems that are merely nuisances to…a bunch of girls. We became complacent with our hubris. Our strength and character have slipped away from us, and we watched it go. But that ends today. No more bullying. No more bragging. No more focus on anything besides working our way back to the top. We do it right, we do it respectfully, and we do it without mercy. We will earn our place again, and we will never be satisfied with stopping. If you don't like where this is going, leave now. My team will be the best, whether you want to be part of it or not. His teammates, possibly paralyzed by this downright unheard of change of heart, did not offer a single complaint. "Well, then," the jock answered. "Set your alarm clocks or borrow a friend's, because we will start training tomorrow morning, and anyone who misses it will have to do the whole workout this afternoon. **Twice**."_

Sky continued on his pull-ups for the acrobatic set. After three weeks of training, he had managed to go from a single pull-up to twelve as his max. He was aware that twelve was not going to cut it for the great warrior Cardin was trying to mold him in to, and knew he had a long way to go before Cardin was satisfied. As he came down from his current set, he noticed Cardin looking straight at Jaune before starting his ab twists set. 'It still amazes me', thought Sky, 'that this blonde managed to inadvertently manipulate Cardin's pride and make him such a goody-good.' Ok, maybe not entirely goody-good, but definitely much more productive. His two other teammates were in bench-press at the moment, with Dove spotting Russell. As Sky recovered from his pull-ups, he observed the other two teams sparring, in particular Jaune dueling Pyrrha. He was quite surprised to see the tenacity and skill Jaune was exhibiting, especially since he had only gotten out of the hospital three days ago, after some incident during the festival that had pushed back the tournament a week. He had heard Pyrrha's reputation of her fighting skill, and although she was living up to it, she actually looked like she had to exert herself to keep up with the knight. Slowly but certainly, however, she began to gain the offensive on him, her superior experience and patience beginning to slip by Jaune's fading defenses and forcing him to dodge quite a bit of Pyrrha's rubber-coated weapon. It was almost certain Pyrrha would route him from there, until Jaune did something quite unexpected. Pyrrha distanced herself from Jaune in a quick backflip and change Milo into rifle mode, presumably to force Jaune to hide behind his shield or take the hit and lose the match. Jaune must have known this was her plan though, as he spun, and- Woah! Thought Sky as Jaune hurled his shield at Pyrrha full-speed. The Huntress, preparing to shoot someone at a distance who only had a sword and shield, was completely caught off guard by this improvised ranged attack. She fell to her left, just barely dodging the flying projectile that crashed behind her, and turned to face a charging Jaune, right in front of her. She's off balance Sky noted as Jaune's sheathed Crocea Mors came down towards her. He's actually going to win. Well, he probably would've, if his blade didn't jerk to the side without warning, and send him careening past his formerly-vulnerable opponent. Wow. Jerk move, Pyrrha Sky inwardly laughed as Jaune picked himself up, muttering something about never even using refrigerator magnets, ever again. "Sky! Focus!" came the voice of Cardin, snapping him back to his workout. Sky now groaned, the next set consisted of running with a weight strapped to his back, over and over again. This was a set Cardin had actually gotten from Jaune himself, though Sky was unaware of this, due to Cardin being too stubborn to ever come out and say it. ****** Jaune took a breather and sat down on a nearby bench, gulping down some water. The day had been trying. Thankfully no schoolwork, but Pyrrha had been relentless with this training session. A flood of push-ups, trophy grabs, even wave-resistance swimming (apparently, swimming strokes were a much underrated exercise to improve your sword-slashing ability, according to Pyrrha). Jaune had thought the slow but steady lap swimming he participated in before Pyrrha's tutelage would prepare him for it, but he was dead wrong. Sprinting five minutes against that current felt like five whole swim practices in itself. And then he had to do it two more times. He had never packed so much fear of a training session into such a small period of time. Pyrrha sat down beside him. "I'm sorry I used magnetism on you. I would try and put it off as having to prepare for anything against an opponent, but that ability is something only I have and it is a little cheap. You had me fair and square." Jaune shook his head, "Nah, if you've got a skill, you should use it. The only reason I managed to come that close is because I've been able to fight against you so often, a cheap advantage that I should not have. Besides," he grinned, "you only used your magnetism at the end. You had to fight the distraction of my dashing good looks from the get-go." At this Pyrrha gave a small laugh and punched Jaune across the shoulder. "And so, I pronounce you doofus and wife," panted over a rather sweaty Yang, as she made her way towards them. She herself must have just finished her martial arts sparring with Ren. Since hand-to-hand combat was a quality both of their fighting styles shared, they had been practicing against each other without their weapons, on the idea that if their fists were deadly, the added punch that would be granted by their weapons would make them unstoppable. Pyrrha just rolled her eyes as Jaune did his best to repress a blush. "How was your training session?" the redhead responded. "Jeez, Ren's good. Didn't even get a single good hit on him." Yang panted back, signs of her fatigue from the workout beginning to show as Ren now appeared in the door behind her. "Well, I wouldn't say that," Ren answered, "because the punches I had to block felt like getting punched with an anvil. I think I almost broke my wrists." Yang summed it up from there. "All in all, a great workout. Ren just needs to quit being so frustratingly quick." Blake herself returned upon just that statement, having dueled Weiss in a swordfight. Ever the consummate opportunist to drop a good snark, she split wide open the opening Yang had allowed thusly: "Ren isn't the first guy she's said that about." This elicited an outburst of laughter from all present (save Ren, of course, who still output an amused smile). Yang did her best to try and look mad at Blake for it, but it was easy to tell she was impressed that she'd been trumped by that kind of joke. As long as her sister Ruby wasn't around to be corrupted by it, any target was fair game, even Yang herself. After a minute, Ruby and Nora returned from the "Bomb Room", as the teammates called it. Every training session between the hyperactive heavy weapons Huntresses was guaranteed to be as loud as a racquetball game. With a hand grenade for the ball. It was constant explosions, weapons blocks, dodges that slammed the offending weapons into the walls, floors, and even ceilings. Yet the duo always seemed to come out as energetic as they came in, the only hint that anything had happened by looking at them was the decrease in the "recovery snack" cookies and pancakes that accompanied the girls to every session. "It's about time," Yang yawned. "Everyone here is ready to go back to our rooms and crash." "Oh, you guys are just so…blah!" her sister retorted. "I'd affiliate you guys more with sloths than Nora-hey!" Weiss suddenly grabbed Ruby by the cloak and glared at her with a bloodshot look that would've made Ozpin crap his pants. "You are my leader…and I will do my best to be your loyal teammate…but you do NOT! ...interrupt my sleeping schedule. Kapeesh?" "Okay…" Ruby whimpered. "We'll all get back to our dorms, while I try not to have nightmares…" ************* A hooded young knocked impatiently. As he awaited his greeting, he recalled upon some recent events that had been bothering him. First the incident at the docks and now the Shade ambush. He'd been slipping in his duties, he could he have let both of those by, unnoticed? What a great protector he wa- The door cracked open, as Professor Ozpin answered. "Sit," he commanded, leading the figure into his office. After setting himself down, the cloaked figure spoke up. "I still don't think they're ready. I don't think I'm ready." "Pax, you yourself admitted they were some of the most talented warriors you've seen. And more importantly, they have the heart and soul you covet. You, on the other hand, have nothing but experience. So when you say you aren't ready to do your part for the greater good, the work, the pain, and your teammate's death should remind you that if, after suffering through all of that, you still don't feel ready, then just quit. Because I can't think of what more you could have gone through, and what more you have to lose even if I'm wrong." The figure known as Pax fidgeted silently, before finally answering "Fine. You will let them finish the semester on Aura control first, though. I don't have any room to try and teach someone the basics if you want me to do this. That means you'd better do something about Jaune and Cardin, since you want me to instruct them so badly." "Admit it Pax, you're also a little excited to see what they could do with Nova." "I'm serious, Ozpin. Just because they do have those weapons and a lot of Aura doesn't mean teaching them would be the right idea. It could blow up in their face spectacularly. Now the skill of team RWBY and the rest of team JNPR, however, is much more appealing, with little risk and still a great reward." "You know the circumstances are too high to try and make a safe bet. We're going to have to gamble on quite a few things, and your tutelage will probably be the safest of the ones we make. You will do it, or do you think that your pessimistic evaluation of them is more compelling than your faith you placed in them?" "Humph. I'll do it, but mark my words if they show any reason for me to doubt them, I'm taking their weapons for myself and giving them tree branches to use instead." "That's fine by me. They haven't disappointed me; it will hardly be a challenge to meet your expectations." Although Pax was still hooded, Ozpin could still sense the smile that took place behind the cowl.

**A.N. I know, I know, there was way more characterization and setup in this installment than action, and I sincerely apologize for that. But this is where I try and handle my (shiver) OC interjection. He is important to the story, so it makes sense to try and give him an actual introduction instead of the oh-so-popular "nd ten owt uv nowhar Marty Stu caym und kild al teh bud guise an evryun wuz liek 'omg you so strong' nd girlz sed 'Marty plz b mah girlfriend'" shenanigans. I promise his role not be more prominent than the main characters, and although Pax is strong, I will also promise you he will not be all-powerful or the only competent fighter. He does have more experience than any students, but he is far from flawless. I have made a point out of this story for any OC I make to compliment the cast, not steal the show, and if you feel any one created starts to drift too far in to the spotlight, don't hesitate to explain to me why you feel that way. Love the story or hate it, shoot me a review. If I take a while to respond, it's because I'm trying to pretend I have super important things to do. Wisp out-**


	6. Chapter 6

** Author's Note: **Chapter 6, enjoy reading it. If not, please send me a review. If you did, send me a review. If your cat walked across your keyboard while reading this story, send me a review.

**The New Beacons of Vytal: Chapter 6**

Cinder was finally satisfied. Much to the relief of her henchman, whose number had decreased by two when Cinder had taken the news that the Shades had failed to kill a single Hunter rather…un-sportingly. This plan…well she had to admit, it was just plain diabolical. She actually felt sorry for her enemies, which was just the way she liked it. Nothing like watching everyone you despise die in such a way that makes even you cringe to lighten a mood. She turned to her side to face Adam of the White Fang, interrogating him on the status of the upcoming operation. "Is everyone prepared?"

"Yes, Mistress Fall."

"Simulated the scenario all one hundred times?"

"With altered possibilities every time. Success rate was ninety six percent."

"I'll take those odds, but what happened in the other four?"

"The first time, one of the members refused to shoot one of the students. That problem was…corrected. Two of the times, a natural disaster struck and caught our men unprepared. I specifically implemented natural disasters for every iteration after that. Hurricanes, earthquakes, even acid rain will no longer stop us. And the fourth time, it assumed Ozpin was nearby, which admittedly thwarted even myself. We've studied his fighting style and now beaten him twice, but it is incredibly possible the simulation does not accurately reflect how good of a combatant he is, and I must warn you about the possibility of failure if he does appear despite our efforts."

Cinder nodded. "I will join you personally for this operation, and if he does appear, I will see to it that your plan goes according to schematics. Assuming your men are as good as you say they are."

"Every single one that is a part of this team managed to pass my test. They were actually conscious after a minute sparring with me."

"Good enough, then."

Team RWBY and JNPR had come to the dorms for the day, almost as lively as zombies with jet lag. All eight of them had _every single class_ on the same day. Since seven in the morning until now, about eight fifteen, the only break they had was lunch. Even the ever energetic Ruby fell asleep in the middle of a Goodwitch's sparring class. _Nora had actually drooped her eyes_ in Oobleck's History class, upon which the entire class, including the professor, gawked for about a full minute before Nora sprung back to her hyperactivity.

"Seriously, this is ridiculous." Weiss complained. "I should've just frozen myself in a block of ice and been carried around the entire time with the amount of time I was actually conscious."

"Hahaha…oh wow, I can't even concentrate enough to laugh," Pyrrha replied. Thus the general feeling of suckiness encompassed the eight students as they returned back to their dormitory. Only Blake seemed somewhat awake (excluding Nora, of course), looking quite troubled about something. Ruby, noticing the more-somber-than-usual look on her face, asked, "Something wrong, Blake?"

The Faunas mulled over it a little more before answering, "There are two days before the tournament is supposed to start."

"What about it?"

"It's one of the most famous and public events in Remnant. And to the White Fang, the largest gathering of all their greatest enemies in broad daylight. We've already been attacked twice when the tournament was supposed to originally start, and I don't think they plan on doing any differently this time around. Ozpin said we should be ready for anything, and if there was ever an anything, this seems like one of the more obvious ones."

"She's got a point…" answered Jaune. "We should probably go to Ozpin about this."

(Headmaster's Office)

"Well, I'm glad to see at least one of my students decided to actually be wary of this. But I assure you, I have taken this well into account. That's why I have assembled every teacher who has tomorrow off, which is all except Gepetto, to be present at the arena at that time. The area will be thoroughly checked by our staff among other professionals to ruin any attempts made by the White Fang to set up any surprises beforehand, and everyone will be present all days of the tournament. Think what you will of each professor, but I have chosen them for a reason. The faculty is made of the most powerful warriors on the planet. I am not a man who likes to be supremely overconfident, but this is simply truth. Even the White Fang knows it. Any attempt to launch an invasion in the presence of every single instructor would be ill-advised, at best. As for the students taking Gepetto's class, they are in the most technologically fortified fortress money can buy. Not to mention you eight will be there." Ozpin smiled. "They'd almost be better off risking the teachers than fighting your teams."

Yang yawned. "Assuming, of course, we aren't dead from today."

"Sorry about that. Get a good night sleep tonight; you're going to need it for the tournament."

"Speaking of night, is there any chance they could just attack us at night?" Ren piped up. "I mean, the White Fang is a group of Faunas. That would probably be their best strategy."

Ozpin smirked. "Oh believe me, they've tried. I've had that issue covered for quite some time. I have a feeling you'll find out how soon.

"What about Pax? We don't know how he's going to affect this."

The headmaster seemed dismissive of the topic. "I know how to deal with that problem. Mr. Gepetto can put any fear of him to rest. Now, to your rooms."

Thankfully, because the class was not until one in the afternoon, this lead to a beautiful 12 hour sleep period for the two team, who woke up at nine and had that time to…laze around another three hours. After finally having lunch and getting finally prepped for the day, they strolled to their class, glumly noticing the carefree students who did not have the Weapons class and had the whole day off on the tournament's Eve. As they arrived at the building, Jaune nodded to the group and left to meet, of all people, Cardin. The two Hunters had noticed something for their weapons class: not being able to disassemble their one-piece weapons, the class was barely doing anything for them, so Mr. Gepetto had allowed them to spar outside for the class period, and 'bond' with their weapons. Both Jaune and Cardin didn't really buy the whole weapon bonding thing, but it was better than doing nothing.

"Well, Cardin, you got the better of me yesterday, so it's time for me to even the score. Anything to say about that?" he teased. As per usual, Cardin just gave him a serious, mute stare. Jaune had no idea why Cardin refused to talk to him at all, but he just sighed and rushed at Cardin.

Jaune had improved exponentially ever since the days of getting beat around by the whole class. If he had fought the Cardin that smugly bullied in the days of old, Jaune would've annihilated him. But this was not the same Cardin either. The determination of Cardin drove him to improve as well, and both opponents had beaten each other on several occasions. As this fight dwindled to a close, Jaune shield bashed Cardin, forcing him to tense up his stance. Jaune took advantage and thrust his sword between the spokes of the Almace and flipped it out of Cardin's surprised hands, earning him today's victory. Cardin bowed stiffly, and then walked to retrieve his weapon.

Jaune let out a sigh of relief, leaning back as Cardin walked over. He was about to turn back to return to the compound, when he saw something that made him look to his sparring partner and ask, "Cardin, do you recognize that guy?" Said mace-wielder glanced over, and shook his head. About two hundred yards away, some figure stood, and not the hooded character that appeared during the Shade incident. Whoever it was wore a black trench coat and-was that a mask? Alarm bells began blaring in his mind. An unknown figure was walking the grounds for unknown reasons during a time when enemy attack was likely.

"Cardin, I think we're under attack. We need to get back to warn the oth-"

An explosion tearing through the building interrupted that particular heads-up.

(One minute earlier)

Mr. Gepetto watched the students tinker on their weapons with even less enthusiasm than usual. He knew that with the Vale tournament coming up, almost none of them wanted to be present. _If only they knew how much I agreed with them. _But this class was completely necessary, and there was no arguing with Ozpin.

Something bothered his train of thought. An almost subconscious signal, a premonition, told him something was wrong. He looked at the students, all oblivious to the danger that loomed just out of the range of comprehension. What was wrong with this picture?

_Their weapons…they need them. Now. _He quickly punched the quick-assembly on the panel.

And the overwhelming sound of nothing happening answered him.

There was only one explanation: Without anyone infiltrating the building, the only way this could've happened would've been to cut the power. _They must have cut the emergency at the same time, or it would've come on. Well-executed. _

His hand had just flipped a mechanical lever when the building's doors were blown off their hinges.

Instantly, a dozen White Fang members swarmed through the entrance, firing Dust-powered pistols. However, the aforementioned lever brought down an emergency barrier door in front of the student's room, and a Plexiglas frame in front of the teacher himself, blocking the enemy fire.

Upon noticing this, the agents ceased fire, and spread out amongst the remaining area, with some of them making attempts to try and cut through with the short swords they were also armed with. Through the smoking entrance strode their leader, none other than Cinder herself.

"I do hope I haven't interrupted anything too informational." Cinder remarked in a biting tone. "Heaven knows the amount of those who complete school is dwindling. Looks like a dip may happen right now."

Gepetto was now holding up his scroll to her, apparently to communicate to the assailants. It read 'GOOD JOB JAMMING ALL SIGNALS. CLEVER TO USE DISSASSEMBLY PERIOD TO DISARM STUDENTS, YOU SPINELESS CRETINS."

Cinder snorted. It seemed like even the lowest of cockroaches had a bit of a rebellious streak in them nowadays. You couldn't even assassinate a simple farmer nowadays before they put out a smartass insult, even in the face of their own death. She personally blamed the media.

She noticed the White Fang members trying to cut their way through both the barriers. "An A for effort, but you may want me to handle this." She drew her men back, and tried to completely incinerate the Plexi-glass first in one massive blast. The engineers that Beacon contracted must've really gone the extra mile in building this barrier, though, because it remained quite intact despite the blow. At this, Gepetto mentally scoffed. It was an industrial safety chamber _made_ to handle Dust-based explosions. She ought to have known better than that.

"Well then, it appears I will have to do this the slow way." She quickly recovered, focusing her fire into a blow-torch like extension just beyond her hand. She then began to slice into the advanced fiberglass, slowly but surely beginning to cut a hole in the material. Unknown to her, Gepetto had reached under his desk…

Inside the makeshift bunker, complete pandemonium was on the verge of breaking out. Students everywhere panicked, with their weapons disassembled they frantically continued attempting to construct them, but all except Ruby were getting nowhere fast. After she rebuilt her Crescent Rose (for the sixth time that class) she walked over to Yang. "Need a hand, big sis?"

"Nope. Just my gauntlets," she replied.

Ruby quickly began working on the Ember Celica. Other students were beginning to crowd her, begging her to repair her weapons, but she wasn't as familiar with those weapons and there was no way she'd be able to assemble any of them quickly enough. Ruby began shrinking back nervously at the closing crowd. Yang noticed this and quickly flared up, screaming "GET BACK FROM MY SISTER!" Thankfully, a miracle occurred before any beat downs courtesy of the brawler could be dispensed.

The power came back on.

Cinder was currently grinning maniacally. She was three quarters done with cutting a large, rectangular opening through the cowardly defense the wretched teacher had placed before her. The fiery spell-caster was imagining just how she would cook this target, before she noticed something. The teacher had slumped over, as if he had just been knocked unconscious. She almost laughed at the worthlessness of her opponent fainting before she even reached him when she noticed something. His hand…what on Remnant was with his hand?!

Said appendage had _plugged in _to a socket of some sort in his desk. Upon closer inspection, the "fingers" had changed into metal protusions of sorts. Wait a second, the sudden loss of energy, the returning power grid…Cinder barely resisted the urge to yell, "ARE YOU F***ING KIDDING ME?!" to the heavens. The teacher was a robot, and it had just diverted its power to the building. She was almost a lot a loss of words for the incredible improbability for what had just happened, before something even more mind-achingly ridiculous began to unfold. The robot began splitting apart down the middle.

And in the robotic frame was a young man, perhaps twenty-two, with orange eyes and white hair, ruffled in such a way they appeared feather-like, with a slightly muscular, 6' 1" build. He was wearing a pair of crimson-colored warm-up paints, with an orange jacket over a plain white shirt. But most importantly, Cinder noticed two metallic gauntlets that covered the hands and wrists of the newcomer. As she tried to comprehend what kind of trickery was being played on her eyes, the male glared right at her and…was he yawning? Yes, and actually rubbing his eyes as he spoke.

"I assume you don't know you my itinerary," he inferred out loud, "because it explicitly states that I'm not to wake up until 10 pm." He now furrowed his eyebrows and surrounded himself with an orange Aura that flared from his form. "And any person or thing that interrupts my schedule," he continued, with his Aura becoming more intense with every second, "is terminated." Noticing the completely cut through shape made by Cinder, he let out a battle cry-and punched the section right into Cinder, sending her flying out the hole she made in the building. Pax (for of course it was he) then let out a quick release of his Aura, sending every White Fang member flying into the wall.

He noted with disappointment that these agents were a lot stronger than the lowly henchmen he hoped they'd be, and they were already getting up from the attack. But they were not his objective.

"No escape, pyro-witch," he growled, and rushed on after Cinder.

The agents were not amused by being thrown back by the newcomer, and were quite ready to take him down a peg, but one of the more level-headed ones spoke up.

"Our mission is to kill the students. We are running out of time, let's go."

The group nodded, turning to the panel, and tried to lift the lever labeled "Emergency Lockdown", but it would not respond. The team discussed the situation.

"Crap, it must be fingerprint sensitive. We're going to have to beat that brat first and drag the body back over."

"Wait, didn't he activate it when he was in the robot?"

"Yeah, that means…"

They stared at the crumpled robot shell. Could it work?

As two of them grabbed the arm of the bot, another one reminded them, "Remember, the students will have their weapons reassembled since the power went back on. Prepare for heavy resistance." Sure enough, using the non-plugged in hand to pull the lever fooled the handprint scanner, and sure enough, a crowd of very much armed Hunter/Huntress's in training charged out.

Instantly gunfire erupted between the two sides, Aura shields coming up to protect both parties. The less experienced students were using both hands to create shields and only the members of RWBY and JNPR (minus Jaune) were shooting back, unlike the White Fang members who could shield with one and shoot with the other. Realizing a war of attrition would lead to their doom, Weiss took charge, yelling "Hold the line!" to some of the upper classmen. She then nodded to her team and NPR, as they rushed towards the henchmen.

"One of us needs to stay back and guard those students. I don't want any of them getting hurt." Ruby ordered.

"I'll do it." Pyrrha volunteered. It made sense, as she was the only one with a defensive weapon of the group.

As the six remainders charged, the dozen White Fang quickly adapted formation to meet them. They knew exactly what these teenagers were capable of, and it would be foolish to engage them in one on one combat. Instead, they staggered into pairs, as they planned to work as a pair to defeat their opponents.

Both sides let out a quick cry as the blades, gauntlets and Aura clashed.

Cinder quickly picked herself up after the hit from Pax. As she saw him charge for her her, she quickly fired a scatter of small fireballs to strike him down. Pax dodged one…two…three and then coated his gauntlets in Aura and thrust his arm, creating an Aura shockwave that countered the following volleys. However, Cinder had already started on another spell, one that was taking place at Pax's feet.

"OOF!" he grunted as a column of flame erupted from below him, which although thermally was nullified by his protective Aura, concussively threw him 10 yards backward, and he landed with a "thud", flat on his back. He did not have time to berate himself for it, though, because he quickly rolled back and flipped, avoiding Cinder's attempted execution. He landed on his feet.

"Gauntlets, huh?" The sadistic pyromaniac asked. "I'm pretty certain one of the students claimed that as their weapon. And she does it a lot better than you do by what I can tell."

Pax was not deterred by the banter. "Hey, I'm older, I was here first. Besides, hers fire completely awesome shotgun rounds. As for mine…" he trailed, before suddenly bursting with Aura, the energy beginning to mold with the gauntlets, "Well, mine just kick ass. They are pretty overspecialized, if you ask me."

Jaune and Cardin faced down the newcomer in the trench coat. The building exploding and his presence were not coincidental, for sure. Cardin spoke first. "What do you want, bat-face?"

The stranger gave a small smile. "You aren't even going to ask my name? How insulting. As for what I want, well, I was sent here to eliminate any vermin that managed to escape our little ambush over by where your friend's bodies will be soon. And what do you know, I catch you two."

Jaune looked like he was going to shoot a laser with his eyes from the anger that started creeping up on his face…then broke out into laughter. But this was not his nervous laugh of false self-confidence, nor the bellows he let loose from some of the shenanigans his life with his teammates brought. It was a laugh of absolute resentment, of cold anger, without any pity. A laugh that might be heard coming from a rabid hunter as his prey tries in vain to escape.

"Oh, my masked friend, that was probably not your wisest statement. I sincerely doubt that any pathetic attempts you made to kill them will work any better than the ones that left them alive in the first place. It's a shame that you won't get to see them prove you wrong," he paused, beginning to allow Aura to spread through his body. "Because you just motivated me to tear you into unrecognizable shreds far before they'll ever get here.

Cardin was getting a little freaked out. Sure, Forever Fall had proven Jaune could stand up for his teammates but…there was pure sadism in this new voice. "I guess I'm fighting with him…" As the white-masked opponent produced a hilted sword, Cardin wasn't sure who to fear more. But, he noted as he hefted his Almace, there was no going back now.

**A.N. Ah, it is nice to be on the giving end of a cliffhanger for once. I just felt that I should wait until the next chapter, as the combat will be lengthy and this one was long as it was. If you think the whole setup with Pax in the robot was over-contrived, I do have the explanation coming up next chapter. Whether or not it is satisfactory is debatable, but I have not ignored that fact. The next part may take a while to upload, so please review, if for no other reason than I don't forget something crucial. Wisp out-**


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